Can you stick upvc window edging to cement? A bit lost what to do!

[Joanne29]

Hi,

A bit unsure what to do so was looking for some advice if anybody can help please?

We had some windows put in but they were never finished off outside as the window company did a runner (after we paid sadly!) There were huge gaps between the brick work and the window outside, so they suggested getting some upvc edging to go around the gaps outside. We bought the edging strip and some OB1 adhesive to stick it on. My partner thought it would be a good idea to put cement in the gaps before the edging was stuck on to perhaps help any drafts or water ingress, but that the cement would be covered anyway (hence it's a bit of a mess!) However neither my partner nor myself are experienced at any of this stuff! We had a friend round today who said you can't stick the edging on to cement, as it just won't stick and he said you can't screw it into the brick work either. I don't know how the window fitters were intending to attach it, I think they were going to use adhesive but they probably wouldn't have cemented the gap first. Basically I wondered have we cocked the job up completely by cementing the gap and will the edging not actually stick to cement? Or is there another way to attach it?

I've attached some pics of the windows and edging if it helps to make anymore sense of my rambling.

Any advice would be much appreciated and please excuse my cluelessness!

Thanks a million

 

[robinbanks]

The OB1 will adhere to the mortar* you have applied, but leave it a few weeks to go properly hard. Mortar cures by the cement crystallising in the presence of water, locking the particles together; it doesn't go hard by drying out. The curing process can take up to a month in low temperatures. If any part of it will be on show after the trims are applied, cleaning it up sooner rather than later is much easier. If it's been left a long time, acid based cleaner will be the most effective - google for "brick acid"

Warm your trims with a heat gun and shape them match to the arch you have before adhering them

Perhaps listen to your friend less; both of the things you've said they said, are not correct

*cement is the fine grey powder; for clarity you should prefer to reference a sand /cement mixture as "mortar" rather than "cement"

 

[Joanne29]

The OB1 will adhere to the mortar* you have applied, but leave it a few weeks to go properly hard. Mortar cures by the cement crystallising in the presence of water, locking the particles together; it doesn't go hard by drying out. The curing process can take up to a month in low temperatures. If any part of it will be on show after the trims are applied, cleaning it up sooner rather than later is much easier. If it's been left a long time, acid based cleaner will be the most effective - google for "brick acid"

Warm your trims with a heat gun and shape them match to the arch you have before adhering them

Perhaps listen to your friend less; both of the things you've said they said, are not correct

*cement is the fine grey powder; for clarity you should prefer to reference a sand /cement mixture as "mortar" rather than "cement"

Thank you so much, that's so helpful!
To be honest my friends advice changes according to the day of the week, hence I feel the need to ask elsewhere! And thank you I didn't realise that about cement.

 

[foxhole]

I used Fixall on all my window trim externally .